Fire Emblem Awakening: A New Dawn
by Harvesting Season
Summary: Grandmaster Robin, of the land of Ylisse has spent his entire life fighting for peace. A peace which has cost him the lives of all those whom he cared for. Now, upon his deathbed, riddled with guilt and regret, the Goddess Naga has come to give him a second chance. Little did Robin know that this extra chance would mean beginning anew in an alternate world.
1. Prologue

Everything was oddly silent as a sense of serene calm took control over Robin's mind. Originally Robin was in a panic when he realized he could no longer see or hear anything around him, but he had realized that it was the fate he had selected. Robin had lived a long life filled with endless war stacked with loss after loss of those he cared for. Many of those he called comrades had left him in charge of their children when they weren't able to make it back from the field of war. He remembered going from a hectic life of war to becoming a glorified royal babysitter in charge of raising the next generation of Shepherds. The memory left Robin torn as it was a difficulty beyond all others to see to those children growing up well with how damaged he had been after the world had practically fallen apart, yet their smiles and nicknames for their "General Grandpa" had always kept his crippled body moving.

Robin had been satisfied when Naga deemed him worthy to visit in his dreams. She had thanked him for ensuring the dynasty of her line continued with the then adult Queen Lucina before finally giving him the choice to embrace a new fate. He had lived far too long in his own eyes and with his passing he could ensure his damned bloodline would die with him. Robin had never had the chance to start a family of his own, but raising the majority of his allie's children had filled that hole in his heart. Without any hesitation, Robin accepted Naga's offer of finally resting his tired body.

* * *

'If I have finally died, why can I still feel? By Naga, I can't see or hear anything, but it feels as warm as Plegia wherever I am,' the thought was rather concerning for Robin as he had expected a reunion with his friends.

'I suppose I'll just wait and see what-,' the thought was interrupted when a new sensation suddenly overwhelmed Robin's senses.

He had suddenly felt something brush against his skin in a rapid randomized motion. It took a few seconds before he speculated on what exactly was hitting his skin, 'Was that a foot? What is going on here…'

Robin had lost track of time since he had arrived wherever he had ended up. The only true conclusion he made was that he wasn't truly alone in whatever afterlife this was. His partner in this "cell" had frequently proven this to him with inconsistent intervals of brushing against him. He wished he could converse with this rather rude cellmate, but Robin was unsure if he was even speaking since he couldn't hear his own voice. It was a rather monotonous life and the second things changed, Robin had grown excited as he hated reflecting on his memories in this chamber.

'Naga! That light! Is it finally time for my journey to come to a close?'

* * *

Robin grew irritated as the light was suddenly blocked by what he assumed to be his cellmate racing to get ahead of him. Considering Robin was used to such childish behaviour, he accepted the rude act and simply waited for his partner to head towards the light before him. Besides, Robin had waited this long and a little bit of a longer line wasn't going to kill him considering he was already dead.

Eventually, the light shone through once more as Robin's partner made their exit from the endless abyss of monotone torture. He found himself wanting to close his eyes as the light appeared almost too bright, but this light had allowed him to get a sense of what exactly was happening. With his eyes slightly open, Robin was able to see for the first time since Naga had given him his rest. A silent horror embraced Robin when his first sight was that of his incredibly tiny hands. Everything was starting to make sense about his prison cell and Naga's gift of a new fate. With that sudden realization, Robin began to scream the violent and angry wail of an infant.

* * *

A male with pale skin and black hair stood holding his wife's hand as she went through the labor of childbirth. Two of the best healers in the kingdom were ensuring his wife and child would make it through the dangers of childbirth. His purple eyes looked into his wife's beautiful blue eyes as he stroked her white hair with his free hand.

"My dear Elinora, hang in there. Our child will be with us soon and our rule will be fully acknowledged by the kingdom."

Elinora huffed as she tried to respond, "V-Validar, I don't want to hear about politics right now!" She was rather irritated by Validar's focus on the fact that they would now have an heir in place for Plegia.

"Of course my love, but you know how much this will mean for Plegia! With how Ylisse has been recently our advisors had grown concerned at the lack of our proper heir." Validar did not want to irritate his wife, but this moment would mean his wife's advisors would no longer be nagging him while he handles his duties with the Grimleal.

Their conversation was interrupted when one of the healers approached the couple with a small bundle of cloth, "Congratulations, my King and Queen! It's a healthy baby girl!"

He didn't hesitate to hand the small bundle over to the Queen who promptly studied her daughter. "Wow… she has my eyes and hair. I wonder what she'll inherit from you my dear husband. Maybe your endless nagging of politics?" Her voice was filled with both exhaustion and jest as she spoke towards Validar.

"We can always hope she inherits my unmatched skill in the arcane!" Validar had a grin that threatened to split his face when Elinora suddenly screamed again.

The healer returned beside his fellow as the two announced, "Looks like there is still one more child!"

Validar and Elinora were engulfed with a sudden feeling of giddiness. Neither were expecting today would end with two heirs for their line. One of the healers announced, "It's a healthy baby boy!" as she laid the second bundle of cloth in the other arm of Elinora.

Validar spoke up as he looked down at his son, "It looks like he's inherited my eyes and hair color. I guess we both get look alikes, don't we dear?" Validar had missed the small twitch in the eye's of his son.

"Validar, I want you to name our daughter and I shall name our son," Elinora felt beyond tired, but this was one final duty they had to finish before she could rest.

"Very well dear, our daughter shall be named Luna after the light in the night that keeps the dark away," Validar laughed slightly at the name considering his penchant for the dark in his own studies.

Elinora smiled at the name, "Our little baby Luna… I shall name our son after my father Robin." Elinora closed her eyes as she snuggled the two bundles closer to her, "Hopefully, he can spread his wings freely rather than be locked away in a gilded cage like my father…"

Her husband could only nod at her words as he continued to brush her hair until her breathing entered the steady rhythm of sleep. 'How can she sleep with Luna and Robin shouting their little lungs out?' Validar had to accept that this experience was truly exhausting to his wife. He nodded to the two healers to continue whatever their remaining duties entailed as he looked on at his two children. 'We will give you a realm worth inheriting my children.'


	2. Chapter 1

**Arch. 2590**

Robin froze in horrible realization of what was happening when he looked up into the face of Validar. A million thoughts invaded his mind, but all he could focus on at the time was wailing his lungs out. He had expected finally being reunited with the Shepherds and instead he ended up in the Fell Dragon's sick joke of a family. Robin couldn't lift his gaze away from Validar's happy purple gaze as it went against what he remembered of the monster all those decades ago. Validar looked young and filled with life with his only odd feature being his rather pale tone caused from what Robin could only assume to be living a life in the Grimleal tomb of a temple.

It didn't fit his perspective of the man, but Robin didn't exactly remember being born the first time around. He assumed that Validar must have undergone some Fell ritual at some point of his young life that caused his mother to escape with her child. That was the other issue, Robin didn't have a sibling and now he found his cellmate to be his older sister by a few minutes. It was an odd and sobering thought considering Robin was older than her and his two parents by decades when it came to both knowledge and living history.

'Hopefully this is a sign things can be different from my original life. Worst scenario is that this is a sick prank from my Fell blood and my sibling is Grima with control issues. Maybe she was upset I took Naga's choice of a new fate rather than hers?' Robin could only laugh at the thought of the Fell Dragon taking such a childish action to get even with him for asking her rival for help.

His thoughts were interrupted when he finally realized that Validar had stopped speaking with his mother Elinora. It was a name he didn't quite remember and rather refreshing to hear again as his mother had passed away from an illness when he was around the age of six. Robin silently promised to ensure that would not happen again in the case his mother had to flee from King Validar. King Validar and Queen Elinora, titles Robin knew they should not have at this moment of time.

'Validar didn't claim the throne of Plegia until the Mad King had been dethroned, so what had changed before my birth?' It was concerning that Robin didn't have the full picture of what he could only assume to be a new world especially since such a small change could mean the Grimleal were even closer to their goal here.

* * *

 **Arch. 2591**

A slow year had passed for Robin as he finally came to terms with the fact that this was a very different world he had found himself thrown into. He silently promised vengeance against Naga when his mother entered the nursery again to feed him and his little sister.

'Amnesia wouldn't be such a terrible thing would it? By Naga, at this rate the little of my remaining dignity is going to be inadvertently crushed by my own mother.'

Robin heard a sudden squeal from his mother as she picked up both him and Luna, "Oh! I love you two so much. My little bird and moon... One day you two will rule Plegia and prove that not all Grimleal are monsters. Your daddy has tried his best to make the people see the Grimleal in a better light, but his father was a very bad man. When the people see you two, I'm sure they'll fall in love with you immediately and beg for you to take the throne!"

Robin had quickly learned that his mother was rather eccentric and had a tendency to get lost in her thoughts or ramble to him and Luna. It brought back memories of little Cynthia's ramblings of being a hero of justice to make sure no one could lay a hand on her "General Grandpa" ever again. It would have been very endearing if not often ending in some sort of clumsy stutter or her accidently throwing her training blade at him. If he had been younger, training her and the other children wouldn't have been that much of a hassle, but he was only able to assist them for so long with only one hand and his limp holding him back.

He quickly shook himself out of his memories as he prepared to block out the quickly approaching event of his feeding. He was "General Grandpa" dammit! This was beyond humiliating. Robin quickly grew jealous of his sister's ignorance to their situation.

* * *

 **Arch. 2592**

Another year had passed as Robin and Luna turned two years old. Robin was thankful that he could finally take off on his own and roam the castle partially. Of course, he never got very far as he would normally tire out his little legs before long. It was at this stage in his new life that he and his sister were constantly being supervised by their mother. She was instant on teaching the two how to speak and that meant long hours of sitting in the nursery hearing his mother repeating the same word over and over again.

"Say mommy loves you! Come on give it a try mommy loves you," Elinora had never let Validar live it down that her children's first words had been mommy and now she was trying to cement that fact by having the children string together a new sentence for Validar's enjoyment.

Luna clapped her hands as she tried to follow her mother's sentence, "Ma love yah!"

Robin internally face palmed at his sister's attempt at saying the sentence. The maids of the castle were often checking up on the two and Luna had picked up the speech pattern of one of their more frequent visitors. It irritated his mother to an extent that you would only see if you asked Anna for a refund.

Elinora closed her eyes and tilted her head to the side, "Say… mommy loves you," that damned village girl maid had been sinking her claws into her daughter again with her illiterate speech. Elinora wished she could regulate her to another side of the castle, but the woman had been so protective of her children and helpful with teaching them how to walk that she didn't have the heart to send her away.

Robin could only shake his head at the sight as it reminded him so much of Maribelle trying to fix the bad speech habits Brady had picked up from Donnel. The thought brought a smile to his face as he remembered the back and forth argument between Maribelle and little Brady often along the lines of "Ma" "Mommy" "Ma" "Mommy." It would go on nearly all day with the only way the argument ending would be Lissa interrupting the two.

'It was a shame Maribelle never did fix his speech patterns,' the happy memory of seeing little Brady getting irritated with his mother always caused Robin to reflect on the past when he had been left in charge of the boy. Training him had been easy, Brady wanted to be a healer to prevent people from succumbing to their wounds like his father had on that blood stained battlefield...

Robin suddenly tore himself out of his thoughts as he realized his mother was staring right at him, "Robin loves mommy," with that sentence of appeasement for ignoring his mother Robin felt his dignity fall even deeper into Grima's abyss.

* * *

 **Arch. 2593**

Robin and Luna had finally turned three years old and from what Robin had been hearing through the gossip of the maids it would soon be time for Validar and Elinora to present them before the rest of the Kingdom. Interestingly enough, Robin learned that a similar presentation would be taking place in Ylisse as Chrom was turning three this year.

'That would mean Lissa is to be born within the next year, but there has been no signs of Ylisse planning to attack Plegia. I wish I took the time to look into the history behind Chrom's dad crusading against Plegia.' Robin wasn't sure if this timeline would follow a similar course and had been doing his best to listen for gossip that could be the catalyst for the conflict.

Robin was violently interrupted from his thoughts when Luna leaned over and hit him on the top of his head, "Robby read!" Robin had tried his best to hide the fact that he was far more educated than he should be at his age, but his little sister had been observant enough to see him stealthly reading various books he had smuggled into their room. They had a silent agreement that he would "try to read" her the stories. He had to sometimes put on an act when he would catch Elinora trying to stealthily watch the two from the crack of the doorway. Holding the book upside down worked perfectly to ensure his mother thought he was simply making up stories for his little sister.

* * *

 **Arch. 2594**

Exalt Aetes focused on his wife with great attention. Three healers had turned their attention to his wife as she was in the process of her third birth, but it had come at a bad time. His wife was going through one of her periods of illness when their third child wished to be born. She was incredibly weak according to the healers and they were concerned she may not make it through this birth. Aetes could only sit there looking over his sweating wife, praying to Naga that she and their child would make it through this dangerous event.

Aetes didn't know how much time passed when the healers started their duty, but he was interrupted from his brooding when they presented him with his second daughter. His wife was no longer struggling in the bed, instead a serene silence had clung to her and the room. All three of the healers had their heads hung low as Aetes held his daughter closer to his chest.

"You will be named… Lissa after your mother!" His voice was filled with power reflecting that there would be no questioning this decision. The fact that Aetes was crying did not change the tone of authority in his voice.

Aetes did not see his ten year old first born shut the cracked door to the room. Emmeryn collapsed against the wall next to the door as she fully realized what the price of her little sister's name came with. She was determined to make sure her little sister did not blame herself for the loss of their mother when she reaches an age of understanding.

* * *

 **Arch. 2594**

A four year old Robin patiently watched over his little sister dump pink dye on a pile of Validar's clothes. Apparently he had cut Luna's desserts because she was refusing to sit through their basic lessons on history of Plegia. Luna had come to Robin and asked him to find the dye the maids used around the castle. He did not question her request at the time as he figured she would simply be painting on the canvas that was in their toy room. It didn't particularly bother him that his sister had decided the best course of action to get back at Validar was to ruin his wardrobe. The man deserved much worse in his old world, but this Validar seemed to be sane and Robin found his little sister's form of intrigue too hilarious to not assist with.

The two hastily retreated after putting Validar's clothing, but it seemed they were not quick enough as the footsteps of a nearby maid had been getting closer. Robin grabbed his sister's hand and dragged her into a nearby room before shutting the door. They both heard two voices as they placed their ears against the door to listen in on the two maids.

"They say Ylisse has been drafting their knight orders for something."

"You don't think they are getting ready for war do you? I can't imagine Regna Ferox practicing barbary in their lands."

The other maid snorted at her colleague's words, "Don't be foolish! Ylisse's King hasn't been the same since his wife died a few months back. I overheard one of the spies talking with King Validar and apparently the Ylisse King has embraced some type of madness. He thinks Plegia cursed his wife with illness!"

"Ah, how scary! I hope nothing comes of it. I just know my son would would waste no time jumping on the battlefield if they declare against Plegia."

The two maids eventually walked away, unaware that they left behind one shocked child and another impatient one. Robin was lost in his thoughts as he realized the implications of the conversation he just heard. This was likely the catalyst that would cause Ylisse to go to war with Plegia. A grief stricken Exalt pointing his finger at the land that his people had sworn against long ago as the reason for his loss. Robin was unaware if this is what happened in his original world, but it concerned him greatly.

Luna decided that she had grown bored waiting with Robin in the room. She didn't understand why he had a weird look on his face, but felt that he seemed a little scared. "Come on Robby, dad won't know who did it!" She thought he was worried that dad would blame him for the revenge for her desserts. Her brother remained oddly quiet and she began to worry, however she didn't understand what was wrong. She knew she wasn't as smart as her brother and needed him to tell her how to fix him. Yes, Luna decided her brother must have broke and had determined the best course of action was to tell mom.


	3. Chapter 2

**(AN: I try not to make too many author's notes, but I wanted to alert those users who followed the story on its first day that there was a chapter posted yesterday. Hopefully, that will prevent any confusion. As for my update rate, I don't have a planned schedule for this story and will try to work on it during the days I'm free throughout the week.)**

 **Arch. 2594**

Validar hurried away from the Grimleal temple as he made his way to his bedroom. His duty as the head priest didn't often conflict with his job as a king, but with how tensions have risen recently he has had less time to spend in the temple. Thankfully, his wife was the face of the kingdom. Validar felt a grin somewhat stretch across his face as he imagined how disappointed his father would be in him for not attempting a coup and installing the Grimleal church as the only power in the country once more. His father had been so devoted to the Fell Dragon's cause that he had attempted to groom Validar into the perfect heir for the kingdom and had expected him to kill Elinora when the time came.

Validar realized his father never had been able to see things from his point of view. His father had been so caught up in the fact that Validar had worked his way into the heart of Princess Elinora that he never realized that the Princess had sunk her claws into his son. Validar lived for the Princess's attention and viewed the days he got to spend with her as more important than the days his father had taught him the secrets of the Fell's Blood The stray thoughts of his father caused Validar to swear in his heart that he would never put Robin and Luna in the same situation his father put him into. Their happiness would come before all else, even if the Fell Dragon were to awaken at this very moment.

He had finally reached his room in order to change out of his temple attire and into something that would fit his life in the court more. Validar pulled his wardrobe open and was met with a sight most horrid. Sets upon sets of wrinkled outfits were dyed a vivid pink with some of them only covered in splotches from what appeared to be someone carelessly splashing the dye across his collection. He could only slump his head in defeat at the sheer audacity of what could have only been one suspect brazen enough to commit the act. The small pink handprints on the inside of his wardrobe had made that suspect perfectly clear.

Validar was left with two thoughts in his mind, 'Can this day get any worse? How will I exact my revenge against little Luna without Elinora pushing me off the castle balcony?'

* * *

Queen Elinora sat at a table with three Plegian advisors gathered around her. She had ordered General Mustafa here to speak about the rising tensions near the Ylisse border. Chalard, a Grimleal dark mage instructor, had come to the small meeting to give his opinion on the Ylisse mages. Normally Elinora would prefer to deal with her husband as an intermediary between her and the Grimleal, but she didn't wish to interrupt his time in the temple. The third advisor at the table was named Orton and to Elinora's understanding he was the current commander of the Wyvern forces in charge of scouting the mountain passes near the Ylisse Plegian border.

"Thank you three for coming on such short notice. It has come to my attention that we may face a conflict soon brought about by Ylissean aggression. Tell me what you can about their movements and current troop amounts." Elinora's voice took on an air of authority she had reserved only for use during her court life.

Mustafa, a tall berserker of a warrior, cleared his throat before answering the Queen's question, "Your majesty, we are dealing with what appears to be a massive build up of Ylissean cavaliers led by a few paladins from the various knight chapters. A few of my soldiers bought some intel off one of those traveling redhead merchants leaving the kingdom. Apparently, the various churches around Ylisse have been gearing up their monks for a conflict. They purchased a shipments of war axes and healing staves in such large numbers that even the merchant had been surprised," he idly pulled at his long brown beard before rubbing the small beads of sweat off his bald head.

Elinora nodded at her general's words, "That fits the information we have already collected. This Ylissean Mad King wishes to push us into a war of religion in his grief. Make sure to reward the soldiers who gave you that information. Give them an extra bag of gold with their next salary payment."

"Of course your majesty, I imagine my men would be fine without being rewarded as they have vowed to protect our land, but if you order it I shall see to them getting double the pay on the next pay day," it was something Mustafa had considered, but he was afraid he would have been overstepping his position. Regardless, Mustafa was sure his men would appreciate the extra coin to send to their families.

Chalard, an old man with a crooked nose and twisted visage, was the next to speak up, "If Ylisse wants a war of religion, the Grimleal will pledge their all to your protection dearest majesty!" His voice was sickeningly sweet causing alarm bells to go off in Elinora's head.

This was one of the Grimleal priests that had belonged to the old guard Validar's father had led. She could not rely on Chalard's faction to defend the kingdom as they would be just as likely to see the castle fall if it meant they could further the influence of the Grimleal cult. Validar had been trying his best to sway more of the temple members to his side, but the old guard faction still remained with the wish of wrapping their hands around the neck of the kingdom.

A fake smile filled Elinora's face as she nodded towards Chalard, "Your support is duly noted Instructor Chalard. Now what do we know of the mages employed by the Ylissean crown?"

A small frown crossed Chalard's face, "Ah, the mages of Ylisse are rather disappointing I must say. They focus mostly on the old tomes of wind and fire, completely neglecting dark magic and only rarely teaching the use of thunder tomes. Our dark mages could feed them to the Fell Dragon from such a distance they would not be able to see us cast our magic. Speaking of our dark mages, when do you plan on allowing us to instruct your darling children your majesty?"

Elinora felt dread build up under her masked smile, "That is interesting information Instructor Chalard. As for Robin and Luna's magic instruction, they are not yet old enough to be trusted with a tome. We have not even had the opportunity to test if they are compatible with the arcane yet." She vowed to never let Chalard anywhere near her children if she could help it, the last thing she needed was one of her children being made into a puppet for the detestable man to influence.

Chalard nodded, "Of course, of course! We can't put the children at risk, but your husband had started his lessons with his father upon his sixth year. Consider putting them under my tutelage when the time comes."

Elinora looked away from the dark mage with her disgust deeply buried under her facade, "What news do you have of the Ylissean air forces Commander Orton?"

Commander Orton sweeped his slicked brown hair back as he nervously licked at his pencil moustache, "Uh...Some of our fliers have reported some increased movement of pegasi forces near the Ylissean mountain forts. Normally, we don't see much activity round there as they prefer to teach their riders inland. Uh…don't really see that as a good sign myself. Started to send my boys in parties to scout round their lands now, don't need some Ylissean recruit to get spooked by one of my lone boys an end up with a diplomatic nightmare."

Elinora noted his opinion as she tried to hide a twitch in her eye. She also made sure to note that Luna should be kept away from Commander Orton or she may end falling back into her insufferable act of butchering her language.

"Thank you for the report Commander, please make sure your fliers stay safe out there. The last thing we need is to appear as the aggressors in case of an incident. Make sure your parties bring a vulnerary with them while they go out on scouting runs, we want them prepared in the case of an accident. Meet with the castle quartermaster on your way out and he will provide you with the necessary shipment details. I'll send a maid down to let him know to expect you once we are done here." She was starting to get the full picture, but going over a few more details could only help their position.

* * *

Robin stood alone in the castle library as he dragged a chair to a nearby bookshelf. His height was insufferable, but he was thankful that he was at least in one piece. Too much was different in this world from his own and he was determined to dig through the archives of the library to figure out exactly what had changed from his timeline. The only clear conclusion he had come to find in his research was that the Grimleal did not have as much influence here as they did in his own world. Records dating back quite a few generation ago showed that the Grimleal had lost their chokehold on the throne of Plegia and instead were relegated to simply having their power through religion.

In one historical tome, Robin had found that a new royal line had sprouted from the rulership of the Grimleal and had been in control of the throne for the last few generations. He realized that Validar marrying Elinora must have been the closest the Grimleal have been to having full control over the Plegian government in generations. It was an odd discovery as Robin knew that his mother had only been a priestess in his own timeline, but here she had more power over the kingdom than Validar as she was the direct descendent of the Plegian royalty that had taken control all those generations ago.

Things were different, but others remained the same. As Robin reached up for a book by standing on the tips of his toes, he idly looked at the mark of the Fell Dragon on his right hand. He had been born with Grima's cursed blood once more, but it seemed his sister did not suffer that particular curse. She was as unmarked as Validar had been to Robin's observations. He idly wondered when Validar would bring up the mark of the Fell Dragon that remained prominently placed on his hand.

'Even in this world I can't escape from this curse… At least in the other one I didn't need to see it everyday considering my right hand my completely gone,' Robin chuckled under his breath as he prepared to dig deeper into Plegian history once again.

Luna peaked at her brother from behind one of the nearby bookshelves. She could not tell her mother that she feared Robin was broken as the big metal men told her her mom was busy. Normally Luna would have yelled at those cold and mean metal men, but those men had given her candy and asked her kindly to go look for her brother.

She stopped thinking about the candy when she saw her little brother laugh as he grabbed another book, 'Why is Robby acting so weird? He's acting boring like those mean old ladies that try to tell me how to act in the castle all the time. Maybe if we play more he will stop reading like those old ladies! Those evil books must have broken him!'

With newly restored confidence, Luna raced up to her little brother with a large smile on her face. Without any hesitation she pushed the book he had placed in front of himself off the table and slapped him on the shoulder. "Tag! You're it now Robby. Come and catch me if you can!"

Robin felt a quickly approaching migraine coming on at the actions of his "older sister," but he supposed that she was feeling lonely considering the children of the castle's help were not allowed to play with them yet. Robin gave a slight shrug of resignation as he allowed his sister a head start in their little game. He finally stood up once he saw her exit the room and began what he was sure to be a game that would net them both into a stern lecture from their mother.

* * *

Princess Emmeryn could not stop herself from crying as she held Chrom and Lissa close against her. Their father had not been the same since mother had passed away and had practically ignored the three for the past few months. Emmeryn wiped away the tears from her eyes as she smiled at her little brother Chrom.

"Alright Chrom, take care of Lissa while I go talk with father okay? Be good until I get back and if you need any help call for one of the maids," Emmeryn finally decided that she needed to confront her father. Even at her young age of ten she realized that how her father was acting was wrong.

Yet, when she finally reached the entrance to the throne room she hesitated before entering it. She had been avoiding the room since the death of her mother since the funeral was held there and it hurt to remember it. She hardly understood the pain she felt from the loss of her mother, but she had come to realize her father had understood that same pain even less than her. Her father had decided to turn that pain into what she could only assume to be hate.

Emmeryn finally entered the throne room only to see her father slumped against his throne. The crown of her mother was placed next to her father on the empty throne that she remembered her mother used to speak from. She watched as her father turned his head to look towards her and was greeted with bloodshot green eyes slightly blocked by her father's wild growing blue hair.

Exalt Aetes spoke towards his daughter with a listless tone, "What do you want? You won't have to worry about those monsters that took your mom soon enough…"

Emmeryn was surprised by the venom that seemed to drip from her father's tone. She had never heard her dad sound so bitter and lost before. He had always been a strong warrior and a central figure in her life.

"Father please, Chrom wishes to see you. Lissa has been growing well these past few months! She has the nicest smile father…" She felt her eyes dampen again as she tried to smile for her father. The man on the throne was hard to recognize as the same person that would play with her out in the training yard.

"...They will grow up well won't they? Yes, I'll make sure they shine with the glow of Naga herself. We are blessed, didn't you know that Emmeryn? Naga has graced us with a clear destiny," he idly grabbed an object that was placed against his throne before tossing it in front of Emmeryn.

"That right there is the Fire Emblem Emmeryn. Naga has blessed me with both the Fire Emblem and the Falchion. With that power, Plegia will never be a threat to us again…"

Emmeryn looked downwards at the beautiful ornate object crafted of gold. She had remembered her father using it as a shield in the past, but did not realize it had been a relic of lady Naga. One of her tears fell upon the shield as she sniffed.

Aetes stood up to recover the Fire Emblem when he noticed Emmeryn's tears falling from her eyes, "They hurt you didn't you? One of those worthless Plegian wenches calling themselves maids. Don't worry little Emmeryn, I will make sure they are gone. All of them will be gone from the castle by the morning." He reached forward and brushed the tears out of her eyes before grabbing the Fire Emblem and heading back to his chair.

Emmeryn was in shock, she didn't know what her father had meant about the Plegians. All of the maids that came from Plegia were nice to her! They helped her look after little Chrom and baby Lissa without any complaints. She shook her head and was about to yell that her father was wrong when she looked into his eyes again.

She froze, she did not see the usual anger that had been radiating in them when he mentioned the Plegian's. No it was much worse, she didn't see anything there. It was an anomaly she couldn't understand. Normally, Emmeryn paid attention to the eyes of those she spoke to as the ladies of the castle addressed that it was a courtesy that must be shown because of her position. She had seen many emotions conveyed through the eyes of those she spoke to, but this time she couldn't see anything in her father's eyes. They seemed void of life and confused Emmeryn greatly as she didn't understand how that could even happen.

Emmeryn no longer had the confidence to speak up against her father. She could not help him as she did not truly understand what she could do in the first place. The man she used to share smiles with, laugh and play games with, spar and watch spars with was gone.

* * *

A little village girl with tanned skin and white hair woke up early in the morning. She had recently turned ten years old and with that age it meant her parents would finally be forcing her to pick between helping around the farm or trying her hand at learning magic to earn an apprenticeship with one of the dark mages around Plegia. Her family was lucky in the fact that they owned a small part of land near the border of Ylisse, so they could actually grow crops in the soil since it wasn't as hot as the rest of Plegia.

"Aversa! Are you awake yet? Your father wants us to help him pick the crops today before it gets too hot!"

Aversa could only groan as she imagined another day of harvesting crops in the sun. She figured it could be much worse if she took too long as it would be sweltering out. It didn't take her very long to make her way outside once she dressed in clothes proper for working in the dirt and heat. She didn't enjoy the task of picking the crops and found herself wishing she had a different task to focus on.

She didn't know how many hours her and her parents had been putting into the monotonous task of harvesting the freshly grown crops when their routine was suddenly interrupted. The three heard a loud horn in the distance and the rapid stomping of hooves. They heard the shouts of the town sentries as Avera's father rushed the two back into the house.

He grabbed a hunting spear off the wall as he kissed his wife and daughter on the cheek, "You two stay here and block the door when I leave. I'll find out what's going on out there."

Aversa was scared when her dad left as the sounds were not familiar to her. She tried to think of what those sounds could have been while she helped her mom place their wardrobe in front of the door. Her mother also covered the window with a layer of bear fur making the place feel extra stuffy.

"Mom what's going on?" Aversa felt panic set in as her mother grabbed a small dagger hidden inside one of the drawers in the house.

"I'm not sure sweety, but it can't be good. If you hear anyone outside, hide under the bed. Promise me you will hide under the bed won't you?"

Aversa could only nod at her mother's words.

* * *

The paladin raised his steel sword and brought it down in front of him. This would be the start of the crusades against the heathen Plegians and he had the glory of being the first to command the march against their land. At the swing of his blade, one of the nearby squires sounded the horn causing his cavaliers to immediately begin their charge. A hoard of dust was kicked in the air as hundreds of mounted soldiers charged into the nearby Plegian village.

Two Plegian villagers wielding simple hunting bows acted as sentries for the small village and were caught by surprise when they saw the massive dust storm headed their way. The shock had caused them to hesitate until they saw the arrows being fired by a few of the mounted soldiers. The final moments of the sentries alerted the rest of the town as their panicked screams filled the air before they were abruptly interrupted by a hail of arrows.

Other villagers tried to duck into their homes only to be met by a thrust of a lance into their side or the stinging slash of a rider's longsword. The smell of blood was overwhelming before it was quickly joined by the smell of soot. Three mages had been apart of the mounted force and had a particular affinity for fire. They gleefully took the opportunity to set homes on fire as they passed by. Villagers screamed as they were caught between the crossfire of burning flames or the hoard of trampling horses.

It was a swift and violent attack against the Plegians, simply meant to send a message. With the raising of his sword once more the paladin ordered the squires to sound the horns once again. The majority of the strike force immediately retreated back into Ylissean territory with only a select few mercenaries being left behind as they signed on with the agreement to be able to loot the remains of the village after the assault.

* * *

Aversa cried under the bed as two men began to kick at the door to her house. She had heard the screaming outside and knew something terrible had happened. Her mother stood near the door and raised her finger to signal Aversa to remain quiet while she raised the dagger in preparation for the men.

She heard a loud bang as the men finally were able to kick the door hard enough to move the wardrobe out of the way. That's when the shouting began as she saw her mother's feet approach the now partially opened door way. She saw her mother lunge forward and heard one of the men scream before a thud sounded from outside the house. An angry shout from the other man filled the room as she heard the swing of a sword before she saw her mother crumpled on the floor.

Aversa tried to bottle up her rage and fear as the man took his time searching the drawers of her house. She did not know how much time had passed when the man finally headed towards her parent's bed.

The mercenary was about to search under the bed for anymore valuables the peasants had, until he heard shouting from outside. He immediately headed to the partially opened door to see what was happening when he was greeted with the oddest sight in his life.

A tall pale skinned man with black hair and purple eyes looked down at him from atop a horse. The man wore a royal coat dyed in a vibrant pink and seemed to be holding a book in one of his hands. It would be the last sight the mercenary would see. An ominous glow covered the book before the pink coated male flicked his hand towards the mercenary. He never had a chance to scream as the bolt of dark energy pierced his heart instantly.

* * *

Validar was beyond furious when Commander Orton had sent a flier to notify him of a large force of riders headed towards Plegian didn't waste anytime in his preparation to meet the Ylissean forces. He was in such a hurry, he didn't bother to look for one of his freshly made coats and instead opted for one of the pink monstrosities his daughter had made the day before. He immediately gathered a force to oppose the Ylissean riders only to arrive at the destination too late. All that remained at the village was mercenary soldiers too stupid to remove the Ylissean emblems from their uniforms. He and his soldiers took their time combing the remains of the village when he arrived to an intact house.

Validar saw the fallen form of a mercenary at the doorway and a corpse of a woman further inside. He figured that a mercenary still had to be present in there and raised his tome in preparation. His assumption proved correct when a mercenary did wonder outside of the home and immediately had his eyes locked onto Validar's pink coat. Validar felt his eye twitch as the mercenary observed his coat until Validar had enough and killed the looter with a quick bolt of dark magic.

He was about to leave the house when he thought he heard movement inside. Validar carefully dismounted from his horse to take a better look inside the villager's house. It was impossible for Validar to remain perfectly stealthy as his tall frame caused him to put enough pressure on the boards of the home to make them squeak.

"If anyone is in here, come out immediately! That is an order of a Plegian official!"

His command laced with authority was rewarded by the sight of a small white haired girl crawling out from underneath the bed. Validar was caught off guard at the sight of her as his thought immediately turned homeward.

'Luna? No, don't be foolish she is safe in the castle with Robin and Elinora. That girl simply reminds me of her…'

Aversa sniveled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. She heard the command of the tall man and crawled out from under the bed only to see a scary guy covered in pink.

"H-hello, I'm Aversa. Have you seen where my dad went?" Her dad had never came back after he went off to see what the sounds were.

Validar closed his eyes and cursed Naga's name before he reopened them and took a knee in front of the little girl. He put a hand on her shoulder as he spoke, "I'm afraid those bad men have killed your parents Aversa. They will rest now with Grima, do not worry we will see to justice being done in the names of your parents."

Aversa felt more tears stream down her cheek as she shook her head in denial, "Why? Why would they do this! What do I do? Mom told me everything would be okay! I was supposed to take care of the farm with my parents… I don't know what to do by myself."

Validar couldn't bear to watch the girl that resembled his daughter break down in front of him. He did something that not even he himself had expected. The big scary pink coated dark mage leaned down and hugged the little girl.

"Shh, everything will be all right. I'll take you to my home in the castle. If you need a purpose, someone to tell you what it is to do. Then I will grant you one! In the name of King Validar, you will become my apprentice! Even if you are unable to use magic, I command you to return with me back to my castle. There you will be safe and the only thing I require of you is to become strong enough to protect my little Robin and Luna. That strength can come through the power of magic or physical strength. It doesn't matter as long as you agree to protect my children when I am in a position in which I can't. Do you accept this order?"

Aversa felt something stir within her chest as she wiped the tears out of her eyes and nodded her head with conviction, "I accept your order!" She leaned further into Validar's hug as she felt something that had been missing in her life in the village. Aversa felt that she finally had a purpose for her life, a true goal to see through until the end.


	4. Chapter 3

**Arch. 2594**

Robin silently paced around the playroom he and his sister had been left in. It had been a normal morning of waking up and preparing another day of browsing the history in the library when a sudden commotion had taken over the castle. Robin took the opportunity to look outside one of the nearby windows to see what got everyone in such an alert state when he witnessed Validar leave with a large patrol of troops. He knew that it wasn't a good sign as it could only mean that the tensions between Ylisse and Plegia had increased once again.

'There must be something I can do... Sitting here and watching a war slowly gain traction makes me feel so helpless. Not even in my crippled body did I feel this helpless,' he closed his right hand into a tight fist.

"Come on, won't somebody see reason?" Robin had witnessed the horror of war throughout his life and didn't wish to relive the sights once more. He thought he had long been retired from witnessing the battlefield once he settled down to train the next generation of Shepherds, yet here he was once again comparing the little knowledge he had of the logistics between the two countries at this period of time.

His thoughts were quickly interrupted by a tap on his shoulder, "Robby, who is reason?" Luna had watched her brother approach the window and partially heard him whisper something. Luna didn't know who this Reason person was, but she figured her brother must be mad because no one can find the person.

She tilted her head to the side to try to look past Robin to see if she could help him find his lost friend as she spoke to him again, "I can help Robby! Are you looking for a metal man?"

Robin sighed slightly as he took a step back from the window and placed his hand on top of Luna's head, "No, reason is not a person Luna. You said metal man, is there some outside our room right now?"

That was something Robin hadn't been paying attention to, but his sister had been close enough to the doorway that he figured she would have heard their heavy boots if the soldiers had been patrolling. He felt silly for having someone so much his younger pointing out that he could simply ask one of the guards what was going on. Of course, he would need to do so in a way that wouldn't draw too much attention to himself.

"Hey Luna, wanna go ask those metal men to tell us a story?" Robin figured the best way to draw the least amount of attention to himself was to have his sister soak it up for him instead.

Luna smiled at the idea her brother presented to her, "Oh! That might be fun!" She had started to like the presence of the metal men as they had often given her treats or helped her reach for things she couldn't get on her own. Luna turned her attention away from her brother and headed towards the door with the intention to look for one of the metal men.

Robin lowered his head slightly when his sister turned away. He felt some shame for manipulating her in this way, but he still retained the feeling that he was an outsider looking in at the family. He had spent nearly his entire lifetime as a citizen of Ylisse getting to know its customs and way of life. Robin had invested so much of his life raising his Ylissean "children" on how to properly protect and govern the country that the mere thought of being labeled as an enemy to Ylisse in this timeline was hard to fathom.

He was shaken from his thoughts from by the sound of footsteps approaching. Luna walked back in with a proud grin on her face as she found an adult that she recognized her mom had been talking to recently.

"The metal men said they had to stand all day, but I found one of mama's friends!" With that statement an old man with a crooked nose entered the room and smiled at Robin.

Robin immediately recognized the old man's robed outfit as belonging to a Grimleal dark mage, 'Of all the people she could have found…'

"You have grown since the last time I had a chance to see you my Prince," the old man's gaze had immediately settled on Robin's right hand.

"Hello, are you dad's friend?" It was at this moment that Robin truly wished his sister had been replaced by Grima. He felt ridiculous having to put on his childish act in front of the cultist who was blatantly entranced by the Fell Dragon's mark.

"No Robby! This is mama's friend Challi," Luna placed her hands on her hips and held her head high as she was proud of the fact that she had overheard her mom saying the old man's name before. 'I knew something you didn't Robby!' Her grin remained firmly entrenched on her face.

"Ah, how rude of me for not introducing myself. I am Instructor Chalard my dearest Prince and Princess. Your mother and father are both friends of mine, so I hope the three of us get along dearly," Chalard chuckled as a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes crossed his face.

"Okay, can you tell us why dad left with all those metal men?" Robin hated the fact that he had to deal with a clear manipulator in such a way that he didn't make it obvious that he was aware of the old man's game.

"I would tell you my Prince, but it is such a boring tale to share. The King is simply riding out to deal with some pests, wouldn't you prefer a much more interesting story?" It was at this moment what the old man's gaze drifted away from Robin and instead fell on Luna.

"Has the King told you the story about the great Fell Dragon? Both of you should take pride in the tale as the blood of the Fell Dragon runs in your lineage passed down from your father."

Chalard was certain Validar had seen the signs in young Robin inheriting the blood of their god and noted the fact that Validar did not seem to be pushing that fact within the church. It was ammunition he could use against Validar's faction to try to gain more support for his own.

Luna shook her head in denial, "Mama never told us that story. I know dragons are like bigger wyverns and can eat you in one bite!" Luna was happy that she learned that tidbit of information from one of the maids around the castle when she had asked what those metal men had been flying on and if there were more monsters like them.

"Oh? What a shame! I will enlighten you on the tale of your greatest ancestor," there was a sign of zeal in his eyes as he finished that statement.

* * *

Robin found himself zoning out during Chalard's grand and likely very exaggerated tale. He had briefly looked into the legends of the Fell Dragon in his previous life and found them to be lackluster in the department of being historically reliable. Robin could already tell that Chalard's tale would just be more of the same nonsense except dumbed down for his and Luna's sake. No, he had much more important topics to turn his focus on.

'There has got to be more people in the court that would wish to gain influence through us. Maybe I can manipulate one of the commanders or soldiers to provide me with information?'

It would certainly be a risky gamble to attempt to grow his own influence so early in his new life. He had spent a considerable amount of time trying to blend in as a normal child and if he were to suddenly take a path of intrigue, it would bring about dangerous questions. The mark of the Fell Dragon combined with a child suddenly having the vocabulary and knowledge of a well aged tactician would certainly see to him being abducted by the church. Robin had no doubts about the fact that the church would immediately be on him in seconds if he showed any characteristics outside that of a child.

He would need to find someone in the court that strayed away from the church, had enough power to see to his commands, and could be blackmailed into silence. A hefty plate of necessities for one random courtier to become his victim.

Robin suddenly paused in his thoughts, 'Huh, if the original Validar could only hear me now. I'm sure he would be beyond proud.'

The thought was rather bitter, as Robin didn't exactly enjoy the idea of blackmailing someone in the castle. It was just one of the only possibilities he could currently see succeeding, but he certainly recognized the fact that Validar would have happily blackmailed his way to power. Even if the thought was rather uncomfortable, it wouldn't be very difficult to innocently snoop around the castle as a child of the royal family. All he would need to do is find some shred of corruption or doubt in one of the courtiers to abuse through a series of letters he could leave them. Robin had finally accepted his internal plan when he noticed Chalard had begun to make his exit.

* * *

Luna sat silently on the floor of the playroom as her mom's friend left the room. He had told her and Robin a long story about a giant dragon who would one day envelop the world in peace. There was a lot of the story she didn't understand though, so she decided to look towards Robin. She knew he was smarter than her when it came to a lot of things and was almost certain that if anyone knew old stories it would be her brother.

"Hey Robby, was that giant dragon a bad guy?" That was the main question she found herself asking as the way Chalard had spoken about the dragon had confused her. He had explained that one day the dragon would take away everything to make it all better, but she didn't want the dragon to take anything.

Robin froze as he realized he should have expected his sister to say something after the tale. It was a clear attempt of Chalard trying to plant the seeds of indoctrination into the cult and he had foolishly ignored it, but allowed his sister to listen to it. This was a conversation he would have to approach carefully as anything he said was liable to be repeated by Luna. That had a real possibility of coming back to bite him if she repeated his thoughts to a wrong person in the castle.

"Well, to some the dragon would be seen as a bad guy. Some people see the giant dragon as a symbol of fear and destruction while others see it as a symbol of hope and rebirth," he tried to point out to his sister that people had a way of making their own opinions about something symbolic.

"That's weird! Mama's friend said that the dragon wanted to bring everyone together, but first the dragon had to take everyone away first. Why would the dragon want to do that Robby?"

That was a tricky question better left to scholars more familiar and with a neutral background in the ideology of the Fell Dragon, but Robin figured he would try to describe the type of scenario the Fell Dragon must have experienced to form the idea of changing everything.

"Luna listen carefully, I'll try to explain why the dragon might follow the path Mom's friend described. Close your eyes and imagine a dark room filled with absolutely nothing in it, but a single painting illuminated by a dull glow."

Luna nodded her head and closed her eyes as her brother had instructed. She imagined herself sitting in an extremely dark room with a slight glow coming from a painting of a cookie.

"Now imagine that you have been stuck in that room for far longer than you could remember with the only thing you can look upon is that painting. Eventually, you would begin to notice small details on the canvas that bother you."

Luna found herself focusing more on the cookie painting in her head and eventually noticed that the black dots in the dough was not chocolate, but instead was fruit. She found herself frowning as her brother continued his speech.

"Those small errors in the details of the painting would only increase as you spent more time looking upon the canvas. Soon enough you would begin to think about ways you could improve the canvas."

She studied the cookie more and found that the dough had not been cooked all the way. It was still gooey and contained fruit. Luna immediately knew what she would have changed with the cookie painting.

"What if you wielded the power to change that painting? If you could suddenly wield the brush and paint needed to make those changes to the canvas you spent so much time watching. Wouldn't you paint over the old mistakes in your eyes and instead paint what you think are corrections?"

Robin already knew what he would have done if he had been given the ability to paint over mistakes from his past. In a way this new life had given him that choice, but he still needed to tread carefully to make sure new mistakes don't appear over this new canvas of a world.

Luna nodded sharply as she opened her eyes, "I would fix that cookie and show everyone what a real cookie should be! I think I understand what you mean Robby. That dragon must be lonely in the dark room all by itself."

Robin was slightly baffled by her example of a painting to be corrected, but her other words had a greater impact upon his thoughts.

'Grima locked away in a dark room huh? That could easily have been my fate. In fact I thought that had been my fate before I realized the entire situation.'

The thought was slightly disturbing, but Robin had to continue his speech to his sister.

"Yes, I would have to imagine that it would be a lonely place to live. Now before you fully decide that the painting must be changed, keep in mind others look upon that painting and love every detail. In your cookie example, what if that was a cookie hand made by mom and dad just for you? Would you be fine with seeing it destroyed in favor of a brand new cookie?"

Luna frowned as she idly pulled at her hair, "No, a cookie made by mama and papa would be perfect. Why would I change something they put their love into?"

Robin smiled widely as he lightly rubbed her head, "Exactly Luna, even if some people find there to be mistakes in the painting others have put their love into seeing it made. What gives a single person the right to correct mistakes only they may see?"

It was a rather hypocritical question to say considering he planned to paint over mistakes he had seen in his old world. Robin accepted the fact that those corrections would make him a hypocrite as long as his corrections allowed for those he cherished to live happily.

Luna smiled as she hugged her brother, "Thank you Robby! I think I get it now. The dragon has been lonely for so long that it can no longer see the love put into the painting in front of it."

Robin nodded at his sister's words as she did seem to understand his example. It may not have been perfect, but he thought it was neutral enough not to land him in the middle of a sleep over with the Grimleal. He was also satisfied that his sister did not seem to get caught up in Chalard's little game of "indoctrinate the royal children."

He broke away from Luna to take a peek outside the window when he heard horns in the distance. Robin looked into the distant horizon and saw the colors of Validar's banner, it would seem the afternoon had passed by faster than he had expected.

* * *

 **AN: Would like to thank my friend Izaru for taking a look over this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 4

****Arch. 2594****

Horns signaled the arrival of Validar and his patrol as he successfully returned from repelling what was left of the foreign invaders within the bounds of Plegia. He rode atop his horse with a frown etched to his face as the young Aversa held his waist for balance. She had been the only survivor of the massacre and to make matters worse, the ones responsible for the attack only left behind mercenaries that wore hastily made and shoddy quality Ylissean emblems. Considering those mercenaries did not wield a proper banner, he could not push for a casus belli against Ylisse off of the circumstantial evidence of the force coming from Ylissean territory. No one wished for war and that would mean that without hard evidence the Barons and Lords of Plegia would drag their feet if he pushed for retaliation without a direct war proclamation from Ylisse or full support from the Plegian Dukes.

The castle guards closed the gates behind their pink robed King as he finally began to dismount from his horse. He helped Aversa down before he gave the order for the rest of his patrol to dismount and get some rest. Validar had to urgently gather the council and inform Elinora of the developments. He had taken one of the shoddy emblems from the corpse of one of the mercenaries with the hope that it would be enough to at least get the Barons and Lords to improve their garrison recruitment. Aversa held the back of his robe as the two swiftly entered into the castle.

Elinora sat on her throne deeply worried about Validar. She knew that he was a very well educated sorcerer and could hold is own against scores of enemies, but in the field of battle all it would take to down even the toughest soldier was a single well placed arrow. As the Queen, she had to maintain her outward composer as she had been trained to do throughout her life. This training still did not prevent her from being a ball of worry on the inside though. The moment one of the guards rushed in and let her know that Validar's banner was flying, she immediately bounced out of her worry and ordered him to gather Robin and Luna. Even if they were still just small children, this was around the age her parents had began to keep her close to the throne when matters of politics were discussed.

Validar finally arrived and entered the throne room with Aversa in tow. The first thing Elinora noted was how strange her husband looked at this moment of time. His pink robes clashed completely with his serious attitude and the darker clothing of the child glued to his back. The white hair of the tanned child immediately caught Elinora's attention as it reminded her of little Luna. Elinora found herself disturbed by the expression on the child's face as she immediately called out to Validar.

"What news do you bring from the village Validar?" It was something she had been anticipating all day now, however from the expression of the child it was clear it wasn't something good.

Validar threw the shoddy emblem on the floor in front of Elinora as he spoke with hardly restrained anger, "Those vile mongrels butchered the place as if they were rabid animals starved for a meal and finally stumbling upon a hare. This girl is the only survivor of the massacre and the only clear evidence of those responsible for the attack is that shoddy emblem any backwards bandit could make. We have nothing but circumstantial evidence to pin Ylisse for this outrage!"

Elinora looked down at the emblem coldly from the throne as her blue eyes observed how the emblem looked hastily stitched from discarded fabrics. Her husband was correct that the emblem was of horrid enough quality that any brigand could make it. This had been an issue in the past with some bandits from Plegia donning counterfeit emblems to launch assaults against Regna Ferox. Relationships between Plegia and Regna Ferox had been nearly frozen since then as Regna Ferox did not trust the words of Plegian diplomats. Thankfully Elinora was aware that Ylissean diplomats have been just as rebuffed by the country, so it would be unlikely that Regna Ferox would side with either country should the worst occur.

Elinora turned her head towards one of the royal guards and gave him an order, "Send word that the council must be gathered immediately. I expect the Dukes to be here within a month from now or they could expect sanctions and increased taxes within this next years taxing season!"

The guard saluted and hastily made his exit as Elinora turned back towards Validar and the child, "The survivor, did she witness anything that may point towards Ylissean involvement? Even the smallest bit of information could make a huge difference. Quickly child, introduce yourself and tell me what you know."

* * *

Avera stood forward after some hesitation. She awkwardly did her best to bow before the Queen and immediately wished that she knew the proper way to act around royalty. King Validar had promised that she would become his apprentice and that would hopefully mean she could truly learn how to act around royalty. She slightly glanced towards the side of the Queen as she raised her head and noted that two small children were staring at her. One little girl with a similar shade of hair as her seemed to be filled with energy as she smiled and looked towards all the guards in the room. That little girl held the hand of a dark haired small boy who seemed to be very upset from the frown on his face. He also seemed to be staring directly at her rather than the guards or his father.

She hastily looked back up at the Queen and spoke with sorrow, "Your majesty, my name is Aversa! I am sorry, but I didn't see much. My mom made me hide under the bed until those monsters came!" she clenched her fist as she remembered what they had done to her village. If only she had been strong enough to help her mother, maybe with the help of Validar she could one day have revenge against those bad people.

"That is unfortunate… I am sorry you had to be caught up in such an incident Aversa. Do you have any family we could contact to gather you from here?" Elinora felt pain at her chest for the plight of the little girl. She could not imagine what is must have been like for the girl to be there during the attack and then see the aftermath of what occured in the village.

Validar immediately spoke up, "I will be taking her as an apprentice Elinora. She will stay within the keep while I educate her on dark magic and the servants will teach her what will be required within her station."

A silence fell in the throne room as Elinora looked carefully at Aversa. She would have done the same if she was in her husband's shoes. They could not just leave the child by herself or throw her to an orphanage after she lost her family to an incident that could have been prevented if they had only garrisoned more soldiers towards the borders.

Elinora nodded, "That is acceptable, Aversa can stay here and take lessons with the other servants. Go find her a room and get her settled Validar, I need a moment to reflect on what you have told me."

She shooed him out of the throne room and indicated that the guards should follow. Only she and her two children remained as she let out a long sigh. She looked towards the two and tapped her knee as she beckoned them over.

Robin and Luna immediately came over with both of them taking a seat on seperate knees. Elinora idly played with their hair as she spoke, "What a mess… I am sorry that someday you two will have to deal with similar disputes. Mommy has to decide on what stance she will take during the council meeting. I really don't want to go to war if we don't have to, but if Ylisse is found to be involved this will force our hand…"

She stopped petting their hair as she leaned deeper into her throne, "We will need to send diplomats or even meet with the Ylissean Exalt to get to the bottom of this. Hopefully we can at least get some of the dukes to start getting their lords to increase garrisons to gather more security. Those extra jobs should also prevent banditry from sprouting up again…"

* * *

Luna hugged her mom as Robin continued to frown to himself. She did not really understand what exactly her mom was talking about, but today seemed to be interesting. First, she got to hear a story from her mama's friend Challi and then Robin told her more about that dragon. Second, she got to see more of those cool metal men that spend most of their time in this room with the big chair. Third, it looks like she might have a new friend with that big sister her dad brought with him!

Robin was deep in thought as his mom talked about plans he could not have any direct input in. That emblem had disturbed him as it was a Ylissean symbol, but was not of the proper quality. This could only mean that this incident was either a false flag attack by a roaming bandits, a hostile mercenary force, or a violent message from Ylisse to prepare for a war on the horizon. What had bothered him even more than that symbol though was the appearance of Aversa. He did not know when his father had originally met her in his initial timeline, so he had no way to compare this incident to where he had come from.

Robin felt his hand twitch slightly as memories of Aversa easily came to him. She had been directly responsible for the deaths of more than a few of his friends and a sizeable portion of the Ylissean forces in his timeline. There was a heavy temptation to make sure she did not live to become the apprentice of his father. Robin knew the thought was wrong as he had promised himself he would not slip back into the same mindset he had drowned himself in when he was left defending Ylisse while Lucina and Cynthia were growing up. He had been a tactician left to raise his fallen friend's children all the while the remaining nobility fought for more power in Ylisse while the royals were stuck with Robin as the regent. It had been a dark period of time for Robin, he plotted and chose plans he never would have in the past in order to ensure Lucina and Cynthia retained their birthrights.

Robin's eyes dulled as countless plans formed in his mind on how to assassinate her without drawing attention to himself. He was a tactician, a veteran tactician, and was not above using intrigue to settle matters even if it went heavily against his principles. His earlier disgust at thinking about falling into his old habits by blackmailing a member of the court was discarded in favor of what he remembered doing for the survival of Lucina and Cynthia. He had sullied his original sense of honor decades ago and had tried to redeem himself in his elder age. Perhaps there would be no true redemption and instead he would once again have to dirty his hands with assassination once more.

It would be so easy to sneak into whatever room she stays in at the dead of night and smother her with her own pillow. Alternatively, he could also wait for her to hesitate a moment too long on the stairs or stand too close to the railing of a balcony and give a slight shove. They would never believe a child would be responsible for such an incident and would simply see it as an accident. Robin also mulled over the possibility of taking a more direct approach. He needed more control over the court, but his age prevented this meaning he would need to manipulate a third party. If he jabbed a dagger into the back of Aversa and planted it in the quarters of one of the members of the court, he would easily create a puppet out of the victim with the threat of exposing the council member with the evidence hidden in his room. All he would need to do is put the dagger on the man's bed and wait for him to pick it up and then he could immediately confront him from the shadows and force him to comply.

Robin was suddenly broken out of his thoughts when his mom pinched his cheek hard. He noticed that both his mom and sister were staring right at him. Both of them looked worried in their own way with his mom having a barely noticeable twitch with her eyebrow and his sister outwardly looking like she bit a lemon.

"What is wrong Robin? Did something happen with you today? You look like you're in a terrible mood." Elinora was immediately concerned when she had noticed the expression on her son's face. She didn't remember a time she saw him so angry before.

"Yeah! What's wrong Robby? You look like you want to punch Mr. Bun Bun or toss him across the room! I won't let you do that Robby! Mr. Bun Bun is my toy, so only I can throw him!" Luna pouted as she jumped to conclusions in her own form of paranoia.

"It's…nothing is wrong Mommy and Luna. I was just thinking about something that I didn't really understand today." Robin needed an excuse to feed the two and he immediately knew who he would be throwing under the wagon in a bid to cover up his real feelings with believable childish anger.

Elinora beckoned him to continue while Luna looked on with curiosity, but with some suspicion as she was still worried her brother would go after her knitted toy.

"Mommy's friend Chalard came to our room today and told us a story about a dragon. He called it the Fell Dragon and said that his blood is in our veins! Does that mean we are dragons too mommy?" Robin had to stop a smirk from crossing his face as his mom's expression immediately warped.

Luna's eyes went wide as she nodded, "Challi said that dragon was big and could eat a wyvern in one bite! Will we get to fly like a dragon? I want wings like wyverns mama!"

Elinora tried her best to hide the other loathing and contempt that threatened to break her smile at being with her two kids. Chalard, that bastard was already trying to worm his way into influencing her children! He was clearly trying to indoctrinate her children into that damned cult her husband tries to keep under control. She tried to gage her children's responses reactions to see just how much of an influence he may have had.

"Oh, is that so? Where were your guards when Chalard decided he would be your instructor earlier? I can tell your two right now that you won't be turning into any big dragons if that is what you are afraid of Robin. It is simply not possible and even if it was I would never allow it!" Her smile contorted as her eyes radiated anger.

Robin fed the flames as he spoke up, "Luna told me that when she was bringing Chalard that he waved at the metal men and they let her bring him to play. I am happy that I won't be a dragon mommy! I would not be able to fit in the castle otherwise." This was a grand opportunity for Robin to both distract the two and watch how his mother or Chalard may deal with a power play.

Luna nodded along with Robin's words, "I don't want wings if it means I can't come into the castle! I didn't think about that Robby, you're really really smart. I should have known they would keep me with the wyverns if I was like a wyvern." Luna felt really silly now that she had the realization that having wings would have been a bad thing all along.

Elinora immediately noted Robin's comments on the guards that she had entrusted her two children with. She knew that it was her mistake to not make it clear that Chalard was not her friend and that the two shouldn't spend time with him. However, the guards should have known better than to let the cultist into the room with her children and from the fact that the guards apparently waved him off showed her that their loyalties may lay elsewhere. How many of her guards were in his pocket or under the indoctrination of the cult? It was a disturbing thought and not one she needed when tensions with her neighbors were at an all time high. She could not deal with purging both foreign and domestic threats all at once without it being at a cost of efficiency and safety. Unfortunately, she could not spare the resources or strive that would occur if she lead an investigation into her staff at such a pivotal moment.

For now, the priority would be meeting with the council to decide what stance Plegia should take and what military matters would need to be developed. A month from now would be the dawn of the next year and she will be expecting all Dukes to arrive or they would face her wrath and the might of the tax collectors.

* * *

 **Arch. 2595**

Exalt Aetes looked forwards listlessly as he sat in his throne surrounded by two paladins to his side. It had been a few weeks since he had ordered a raid on Plegia, but nothing has occurred since. He wanted to urge his people into a frenzy and for that he needed Plegia to strike first. He needed to keep planning, unfortunately his daughter Emmeryn would not stop pleading for him in letters to accept a meeting with her and his two other children. It had been awhile since he had seen Chrom and he dared not lay his eyes on Lissa since her birth.

The doors to his throne room opened as Captain Meyers escorted Emmeryn into the room. Young Chrom held the side of her dress as she strode forward with Lissa carefully supported in her arms. Chrom looked steadily towards his father with a sense of curiosity. He hardly knew his dad, but Emmeryn had told him he should stay very quiet while around him.

"Father, I present Prince Chrom and Princess Lissa to you. Please allow us to head to your side!" Emmeryn had not spoken directly with him in the throne room since she realized that something was deeply wrong with him. She hoped seeing the three of them together could somehow turn him back into the dad she used to know.

Aetes waved his hand for them to approach. His emotions were rather fickle and at this time he decided to accept Emmeryn's request just to stop her from sending more letters to him with his meals. Emmeryn walked forwards with Lissa in her grasp and Chrom in tow. She had spent the last few months doing her best to act as a mom for the two from what she remembered her mom had done. That meant reading stories to both of them and trying to teach Chrom how to read before the instructors started his real lessons.

Emmeryn held out Lissa towards her father, "Father hold Lissa a moment, isn't she beautiful father? She has mother's eyes and beautiful shade of hair."

Aetes took Lissa in his grasp as he looked at the small bundle in his arms. She looked just like Emmeryn with the blonde mop of hair and bright green eyes. The imagine of his two girls reminded him of his fallen Queen. She cooed in his arms as he looked into her eyes. That's when Aetes made a discovery and froze completely, how had he missed this? He quickly looked up from Lissa and his eyes locked onto Chrom's shoulder, the brand was there. His eyes turned towards Emmeryn's forehead, the brand was there.

Aetes shoved Lissa back towards Emmeryn as he stood from his throne, "The dishonor! Do you think me a fool? This is not the Lissa I wanted! This bastard spawn has no brand! In her final moments, my wife died an adulterer! Take this bastard out of my sight at once!" He was spitting with anger as his image of his wife and third child shattered. He could not recall in his muddled mind a time in which a child of his line was born unbranded.

Emmeryn paled as she hasilty held a crying Lissa, "Father what nonsense are you speaking! This is Lissa, please she is your daughter."

Aetes stepped forward suddenly and slapped Emmeryn across the face. His insanity was reaching a breaking point and his dream of protecting his family had become murky in the swamp of his mind.

Emmeryn fell backwards making sure to keep a tight grasp on Lissa. She was able to keep Lissa from falling from her hands, but was terrified by what her father had just done. She sat on the floor as her soft crying merged with the wails of little Lissa. Chrom charged at his father in anger trying his best to punch the man with the little strength he had. Aetes simply pushed Chrom who landed next to Emmeryn.

Chrom looked at his father from the ground with contempt while he noticed one of the paladins to the right of his father begin to shake. The armored man's face was obscured as he stood in formation holding a spear. The hand holding the spear seemed to not sit still as if the guard was trying to best to stop himself from lowering the point and charging forward.

Captain Meyers immediately stood forward from the closed doors of the throne room and bowed, "I will remove them from your presence immediately your highness!"

Aetes nodded, "Good, good, get them out of my sight at once!"

Captain Meyers helped the still crying Emmeryn up while Chrom stood on his own. Chrom continued to stare into the eyes of his father as he sat down at his throne. He would not forget this, never would he let his father's actions go. Captain Meyers put a hand on Chrom's shoulder and urged him to come with him. Meyers's eyes briefly locked with the helmed paladin who started to calm himself. A silent message seemed to pass between the two before Meyers left with the children.

Aetes looked to the paladin at his right and gave him an order, "Paladin Ains, alert the castle barracks that any male blonde haired and green eyed servants must be arrested at once and brought before me. Do so immediately or you will be added with the lot."

Paladin Ains tapped his spear on the floor and gave a bow with his gauntlet against his chest. The Exalt was mad and the castle staff knew it, there was nothing they could do as he was divinely appointed and any coup would have to wait until Emmeryn grew older. The Knightly orders would also be a real threat in the event that the coup was attempted without their support. He had wanted to impale the Exalt so badly at the moment he had struck the sweet Princess. She was Naga compared to the Fell Dragon that the Exalt had become.

* * *

It had taken some time and had brought a wave of confusion upon the castle staff when the male blonde haired and green eyed guards and servants were escorted to the throne room by an armed force composed of other guards. The fifteen gathered prisoners were brought before the Exalt and forced to kneel.

The Exalt stood from his throne and immediately yelled in anger, "One of you has brought great dishonor against the entire halidom! Treason has been committed against me! One of you sullied my wife and sired a bastard who does not bare the mark of my blood line. I know the one responsible will not step forward and for that… all of you shall be executed."

Paladin Ains stood to the side of the Exalt as his fear proved true. These brothers in arms would die today as the Exalt demanded because no one could stand against his orders without betraying their oaths. The guards standing over the prisoners looked at one another with confusion while their captain stood forward.

Captain Meyers stood in front of the Exalt, "Your majesty this is insanity! You would have me execute our own men on the basis that one of them may have sullied your wife? How do you know your child's brand is not just hidden! I didn't see you take a very close look at her!"

Meyers was outraged, he had trained the guards that were among the arrested and knew they would not have committed such a crime. They held the greatest respect for the Queen while she had lived and would have never dared to lay a hand on her.

Aetes drew Falchion from its sheath as he looked at his treasonous Captain, "Your words are treason Captain! Surrender yourself at once and kneel with the others!"

Captain Meyers looked around the room at the various pale faced guards and masked paladins. The older man knew this situation was hopeless and wished that he had another chance to spend time with his family again. Captain Meyers drew his steel sword and raised it against the Exalt. It was treason, there would be no going back after this.

Captain Meyers held his steel sword forwards pointed at the Exalt, "You really have embraced insanity! Men stand with me! The Exalt has gone mad and we need to put a stop to this before it's too late!" Meyers looked at his pale faced fellow in arms as they raised their swords against the Exalt as well.

Exalt Aetes snarled, "Paladin Ains, Paladin Regius! Help me dispatch these traitors at once!

Paladin Ains readied his spear as he apologized in his heart for what he was about to do. Regius raised his spear as well as the two headed for the Exalt's side.

The guards stood behind their Captain while the Paladins stood at the side of their Exalt. This is not how they wanted things to be. They were all brothers in arms, yet they found themselves at odds as their own forms of honor kicked in. The Captain's honor laid in protecting the people and that was something his armsmen shared. He knew that the Exalt could only hurt the people in his madness. The Paladin's honor laid in protecting the divine blood of Naga at all cost, they could not allow the Exalt to fall or they would die in shame.

The throne room was frozen with tension as the prisoners fell in the center between the stand off of the Exalt and Captain Meyers. This tension was breached when the doors to the throne room burst open as robed mages flooded the room. One of the royal guards to the throne room had sounded an alarm and that caused the Ylissean mage force to enter the room under the leader of their instructor.

Instructor Morris immediately noted the situation with the guards under Meyers raising their sword against the Exalt. He have a simple order, "Burn them all! Traitors have no place in Ylisse! Include the prisoners, we can't risk their escape!"

Aetes smiled for the first time in what must have been ages, "Just in time Morris! Get these treasonous Plegian boot lickers out of my sight!"

Paladin Ains watched form the right side of the Exalt as his fellow brothers in arms were burned to death on the order of the Exalt and the instructor of the Ylissean fire branch of mages. There was no hesitation on the side of the mages as the pale faced guards rolled on the floor as their armor sizzled and charred in the licks of flame. Captain Meyers burned alongside his men as the prisoners joined their fate. Ains could only watch on helplessly as he shared a masked glance with his fellow Paladin Regius. They were the hands to the Exalt, a mad man who would burn his own at a moments notice.

Aetes took his throne again as the mages, under the order of Morris, lined up before him, "Very very good! Loyalty to the Exalt is all I ask. All of you have done a fine job today in making sure the realm stays safe. Now I order you all to keep quiet about what happened here today. We will publicly state that Captain Meyers and his forces died while patrolling along the Ylissean Plegian border. It's such a shame that he was cut down by those mad Plegian dogs isn't it?"

"Of course, Exalt. It is our honor to come to your aid and it is a shame that such a young group of men died defending their homeland against the Plegian barbarians." Morris made sure his eyes briefly looked over each of his mages. He wanted to make it clear that no one was to speak of what occured in the throne room on fear of death.

Aetes waved the group out as he spoke to the two Paladins, "Isn't it grand? We have even more outrage to feed the public against the scum in Plegia. We need to purge them all before their cult threatens our peace. Regius, you're in charge of informing the families of the guards that died here today. Ignite righteous fury against Plegia in their hearts. Ains, you did great coming to my side immediately. I feared Meyers was about to lunge at me before he saw you move. You will be handsomely rewarded on your next payday!"

Ains bowed once more with his gauntlet to his chest. He felt sick at the words of the Exalt and how he had so easily driven those under his flag to rebel. It did not bode well for the continued stability of Ylisse. He knew now that he would have to spend his free time ensuring the heirs to Ylisse were properly prepared to rapidly take the throne. Ains would train them himself or at the very least start to silently plot with like minded individuals to get Emmeryn on the throne sooner rather than later. His oaths were worthless if it meant supporting someone that would be so willing to condem his own. The Paladin's duty was to protect those of Divine blood and the only way he was sure the line could continue would be if Emmeryn took the throne.

* * *

 **Arch. 2595**

Elinora sat on an elevated throne with Validar seated to her side. Robin and Luna sat off to the side of the council meeting under the watch of a few royal guards. The four Dukes sat around the table while General Mustafa stood to the left of Elinora and Chalard stood to the side of Validar. This was the council that would determine the lives of many Plegian subjects.

Robin had spent some time researching the political climate of the council after his mother had called for it to be held. Plegia did not have the same style government from his timeline and it clearly showed in the way things were organized in the realm. In this timeline, the government was much more similar to Ylisse in its form of organization, however Ylisse's power mostly fell into the hands of the Knightly orders and bishoprics throughout its territory. Plegia was different in that respect as Grimleal influence was greatly diminished meaning the nobility had more influence in Plegia.

Each Duke came from a portion of Plegia with each of the Dukes responsible for upholding their duties and the duties of those under them. These Dukes were responsible for the Lords of the land, often being in charge of upwards to six Lords each. Those Lords were responsible for the Barons within their territory which could number from two to four. Barons were responsible for sending recruits to be trained in the territory of their Lord. These Barons were also incharge of making sure crops were planted and harvested in a timely manner.

Lords would take the recruits from Barons and train them into guardsmen. Lords were also tasked with keeping the peace and solving conflicts within their lands. They were the ones that had to put down bandit forces and gather the taxes of their territory. Each Lord would answer to the Duke they fell under and provide those Dukes with the excess taxes, soldiers, and crops from the territories. Robin wondered how this would have changed things in the Ylisse of his timeline.

In the original Ylisse, nearly every Knightly order was extinct by the time he was regent. That had meant that the nobility immediately tried to grab power independently as there were no greater Lords keeping them in check. Each Count attempted to use the power of their estate to drum up influence in Ylisse and that had led to a messy political climate. Robin was only able to prevent a full blown civil war by carefully assassinating key players and influencing the more aggressive Counts to wage war against one another until both would fall. Robin was broken out of his thoughts when one of the Dukes cleared his voice.

"Queen Elinora, it is not often we are called upon for an emergency. I assume this has to deal with that border dispute incident in which Duke Tobin lost his village?" Duke Elias was the first to break the silence of the room.

Elinora noted that it was Duke Elias that immediately got to the point. He was the Southern Duke and the more diplomatic member of the council who mostly tried to stay neutral and keep people on topic more than anything else.

"I would have been surprised if my Dukes did not know of the incident. A whole village can not be outright destroyed without us getting an answer. Especially when it borders a neighbor who has proven to be hostile throughout our history."

Duke Tobin nodded at her words, "My ancestors fought against the Ylisseans. They died defending their land and now these barbarians think they can pillage my territory without me raising a hand? Your majesty, I want to ride out with my banners raised at once! The Dark Mages have already pledged their support." Tobin looked towards Chalard who nodded at his words.

Elinora internally sighed, Tobin was the Duke of the East and came from a long line of nobility sworn to defend the lands of Plegia. He was very close to the Grimleal considering his family line extended so far into the past of Plegia and was a known member of the cult. Tobin could only be described as hotheaded as he was quick to anger, but the common soldiers adored him as he often directly joined his Lords in hunting down bandit groups and fought side by side with his soldiers.

"The public would not be so quick to join you in this endeavor Duke Tobin. We may know of the attack, but we would be seen as aggressors if we sallied out without proper justification."

Duke Ives nodded at the words of the Queen, "The Queen is correct Duke Tobin, where would we get the coin to support a war? Our citizens would not wish to be taxed even more on top of being conscripted. There is no doubt that the cost would be high in a full scale war with Ylisse." He adjusted his glasses.

Mustafa pulled at his mustache as he spoke, "Duke Ives is correct with the cost. We would be forced to conscript to even match the number of soldiers the Ylissean chapters have. Each of those conscripts would need to be outfitted."

Chalard shook his head at both Duke Ives of the West and General Mustafa, "Those costs would not be a problem. Ylisse wishes a war of religion and the Grimleal will fully lend our gold and mages to the defense against our way of thinking." He took a slight glance at Validar as he spoke.

Validar cleared his throat, "Of course, the Grimleal would offer their full support in this military matter. You would see that arranged for us correct Instructor Chalard?" Validar silently cursed at the leader of the Old Guard faction. Chalard would milk this support in the time of their need and there was nothing he could do since the Old Guard held such a huge influence over the cult. It was likely that this support would be used against him to enforce a later demand.

Elinora hated that snake with a passion, but she had to remain neutral especially with a possible war on the horizon. "Grimleal support is noted, however I would like a draft of the possible economic impact of a war with Plegia within the week."

Duke Ives nodded to Elinora as Duke Rouland spoke softly, "My eyes have let me know that Regna Ferox has not indicated a stance for either power. They will remain neutral unless provoked."

Elinora was always on guard against the Northern Duke Rouland. There was something about him that set her on edge and it didn't help that he held one of the largest spy networks in Plegia. "It is a relief to hear that Regna Ferox is unlikely to make a move in the event of war. Considering your territory is near their border, keep an eye on them and send regular updates of their movement."

The council soon fell into a mix of debating and planning as they discussed the evidence provided and what exactly should be done against Ylisse. It was eventually decided that Plegia would take a wait and see approach while sending a diplomat to attempt to contact the Ylissean Exalt. It was also agreed upon that the Grimleal would pay for outfitting and the training process for more soldiers for the next year. Those extra forces would be stationed along the border and hopefully deter any more aggression.

* * *

 **Arch. 2596**

A year and a handful of months had passed since the council meeting held in Plegia. Plegian diplomats had been turned away from Ylisse at the border causing an increased drive in recruitment. Garrisons along the border had been strengthened and Ylisse had yet to make a move since their initial attack. Barons and Lords grumbled at the decrease of local man power in favor of more soldiers and showed some concerns over a decrease in crops because of the lack of manpower. The Dukes reassured their worried vassals about increased levy recruitment by subsidizing food loss through importing grains from Valm. Duke Ives warned the Queen and the other Dukes that anymore raised levies would begin to eat into the royal treasury as more food would need to be imported.

Robin had spent the time of relative peace to try to figure out what exactly he wished to do. He had wanted to kill Aversa and gain more power in the council, but Luna had began to view Aversa like a sister and the council seemed more competent than the council he had to deal with in Ylisse. He had the ability to assist in the logistics for a possible war, but his position did not allow him to do so yet.

Robin and Luna had turned six years of age and waited patiently in the throne room for their mother to speak up. To her side stood Chalard, the old man looked more than a little smug at the clear expense of the Queen. She looked tired and more irritated than usual when she finally cleared her throat.

"Now that the two of you have turned six, according to your father you should now be ready to be trained in the art of magic. Instructor Chalard has offered his _amazing_ tutelage to just one of you." There was evident sarcasm in her tone that Chalard seemed to ignore as the old man continued to smile.

Robin looked at Luna who appeared to be torn on if she wanted to go or not. Robin wasted no time in standing forwards, "Mother, I want to learn under Instructor Chalard. I promise that I will become strong enough to stop Ylisse from ever attacking us again."

Now that he was slightly older, it was much easier to not sound as ridiculous as he did. He still had to show some signs of childish behaviour, but his language was often passed off as him trying copy his father and mother.

Chalard's smile seemed to grow even wider at Robin offering to go under his tutelage. He had been planning this moment ever since he saw the brand on Robin's hand. The mark of Grima meant that Robin's proficiency in Dark Magic would be nearly limitless. Chalard would have been greatly disappointed if Luna had stepped forward, however he had assumed that Robin would as he was very protective of his sister.

Chalard was just happy that he finally received such a huge boon for the Old Guard. They had taken a hit to their pouches by helping arm the new garrisons and this arrangement was the only way Validar and the Queen could pay them back.

"Come my Prince, you have much to learn of the Dark. You have the potential to surpass even your father in magic. With enough training, Ylisse may become too fearful to even dare take you on!" Chalard would rely on the Prince's hunger for power to protect Plegia to influence him. It was almost too easy. Prince Robin would soon be leaving the castle with him and enter his private academy as the student with the most potential he has ever seen.

* * *

Luna was upset when she saw Robin escorted out of the castle with two guards following him and Chalard. Her brother had been at her side since she could remember and now he was being forced away by that mean old man. She once thought that mad had been a friend of her parents, but as she aged and began to pick up on more subtle clues she realized how much her mom seemed to despise the Instructor.

Luna was tempted to go in Robin's stead, however he had told her earlier that afternoon that if the Instructor had forced their parents hand that he would volunteer so she could spend more time with big sister Aversa. Aversa was fun to play with and often spent the time she wasn't studying with dad playing with her. The two would often play with the knitted toys the servants made or plot pranks against the older butlers and maids of the castle. There had been more than a few repeated incidents of pink dyed clothing within the castle.

Elinora's fingers dug into the arm rests of her throne as she paled. She had just approved of her one and only baby son going into the clutches of a zealous Grimleal priest. It was a sacrifice for the greater good of the kingdom and was a choice she had to make neutrally as the ruler of Plegia. That mindset did not offset her protective instincts screaming murder at her. She knew that Chalard would never dream of laying a hand against her son, yet she feared that hand would not clasp his throat but rather wrap its clutches around his heart. Her greatest fear was her son returning a zealot and no longer resembling her inquisitive baby boy.

Validar sat at his desk with Aversa seated across from him. Aversa seemed to be lost in thought while Validar had his face hidden in his hands while he rested his head on the desk. His son being forced into Instructor Chalard's academy was entirely his fault. He had promised his wife that he could keep the cult under his banner, yet time and time again the Old Guard had risen up and striven to make headway into the politics of Plegia. Chalard becoming the guardian of his son was a clear powerplay in favor of the Old Guard and only helped to undermine Validar's leadership of the cult in the eyes of the neutrals, but Validar could not outwardly strike back for fear of the Old Guard causing instability within the cult that could eventually lead to war or a severe loss of Dark Mage support for the Plegian army.

Validar's hands shook as he raised his head. Anger coursed through his body as he violently knocked the tomes off his desk. This would not go unanswered! Validar would not allow the Old Guard to hold sway over his son. He feared that should their influence sink in deep enough his own blood may raise the banners of the cult against his own family. A vision was immediately conjured in Validar's mind of an older version of his son leading a clash with his own crowned sister. Normal Plegian soldiers turned to dust under his son's orders as his sister desperately fought back with all she had. This was his greatest nightmare and the only way he could prevent it would be sabotaging the Old Guard from behind the scenes. It was time for him to go on the warpath of intrigue against the Old Guard and drum up more support for the throne in the confines of the cult.

Eleven year old Aversa studied the reactions of her Instructor Validar. He was enraged and it was clearly because little Robin was being pressed into the academy ran by the creepy old man. The last time she had seen him this angry was when he reported the attack on her village to the Queen. There was not much she could do to help in this situation, the only thing she could do is silently promise herself that she would keep Luna company. The girl would be devastated without her brother and it will be up to her to try to ease her into life without him constantly at her call.

Aversa viewed those two children as if they were her younger siblings. Luna constantly wanted her attention whenever her brother was busy and Robin would often silently keep her company as she read her tomes in the library. She knew that the young boy did not enjoy her company, but she figured it was jealousy over how often his sister played with her in favor of seeking him out. Aversa hoped that Robin would thrive at the academy and come back with enough maturity to realize that she was just trying to look out for the two children. She wanted to break through his isolationist demeanor and show him he had nothing to fear with her looking over him and his sister.

* * *

Duke Tobin sat upon his mount and looked down at the lines of soldiers saluting him. He had decided to pay a visit to the border pass garrison within the confines of his eastern border. Most of the garrison was composed of pale faced young men in simple leather armor with only a handful or so of the standing men showing clear signs of a veteran background thanks to their professional composer. It was a shame that so few of them seemed properly prepared for war in the case it were to break out.

His eyes locked onto the hooded mages in the back of the force. They were the destructive hand of the garrison and had the potential to break sieges on their own if given enough time. This small company of Dark Mages was one of the many supplied by his church and they would make all the difference in a war with Ylisse. Ylissean mages were weak in comparison considering they would much rather wish to wield the fickle elements of nature rather than drain the life force of men to feed their own.

Tobin's military background allowed him to see the true potential of the Dark Mages that many may have overlooked. These soldiers had the potential to practically revive themselves from the dead if they were able to land a spell before collapsing from wounds as they would drain the life force of those hit by their curses. He nodded to himself as he looked over the garrison. The pale faced recruits were a concern, but they did not need to hold the walls themselves. They simply had to act as a distraction for the Dark Mages to go to work with the blessing of the Fell Dragon. In the outcome of aggression, they would be tasked to hold the line while a rider would send the declaration of war back to the castle.

Tobin still wished for revenge against Ylisse and had spent a sizeable portion of his own vault on providing the recruits of his territory with better equipment than these stationed at the garrison. Should the garrison fall, his armored warriors would be the first line of defense and he would gloriously lead them into battle with the Ylissean dogs. Duke Tobin would not let this dishonor go until he received his pound of flesh from Ylisse, preferably in the form of smashing the Exalt's head in with his hammer.

* * *

Emmeryn stood over Lissa's crib as she pet the head of her little sister. She had not spoken with her father since he had kicked the three out of the throne room. Chrom no longer seemed to be as excitable as he had been before that incident. He had become more serious and seemed to spend more time with the guards of the castle and that hurt Emmeryn greatly. Her brother used to smile all the time and spend the majority of his time with her and Lissa, but now he spends his time hearing war stories and tactics from soldiers in the castle barracks.

Emmeryn was broken out of her thoughts when she heard a quiet knock at the door, "Who is it?"

A warm voice spoke from the hallway, "Paladin Ains your grace, I have come to see how you and dearest Lissa are doing."

Emmeryn couldn't stop the half smile that rose on her face. Paladin Ains was known as the Right Hand of the Exalt and was a respected soldier within the ranks of Ylisse. He had spent a considerable amount of his free time over the course of the last year visiting her and her siblings.

"Sir Ains, you are always welcome to enter." He was one of the few remnants of her father's influence that she still respected.

Ains pushed open the door and looked at the seated Princess Emmeryn running her hand through Princess Lissa's hair. Princess Lissa was a sore subject within the keep with the subjects of the castle being ordered to ignore her existence by the Exalt, yet his influence waned when it came to this order. Ains and other subjects of the castle ignore the ramblings of the Exalt behind his back and continued to treat the babe as a member of the Exalt's line. After all, the Exalt refused to leave the throne room and that made ignoring his orders all the more simple.

Ains stood in front of Emmeryn and bowed with his gauntlet across his chest, "Princess Emmeryn there have been stirrings and whispers among the nobility as of late. They have subtly indicated that they would fall under your banner should the worse occur in the future. Their only requirement is a reform of the church's power within the halidom once you gain power."

Ains had personally led the inquires with the nobility under the nose of the Exalt. He needed to drum up support for Emmeryn way in advance so when she took the throne it would be a smooth change of power. Young Emmeryn smiled at him before she turned back towards Lissa.

"That is a relief to hear Sir Ains. My father has gone mad and needs to be dethroned before he drives us into a war with Plegia. I have been informed that he has yet to make a move against Plegia again. Tell me has he whispered anything into your ears as of late?" Emmeryn closed her eyes as she took a breath. She would need to grow up even faster to wretch the power out of her father's hands.

Ains nodded, "Unfortunately the Exalt has been meeting with the leaders of the more obscure church task groups as of late. I believe he is planning an assassination Princess Emmeryn. That would be the most direct message of war to our neighbor in Plegia. They would not let go in the event one of the Royals were slain by a Ylissean assassination flying the true emblem. He also seems to be forming some form of Inquisitorial force with the Knightly orders. I expect that more of his outspoken critics will go missing very soon."

Emmeryn's face morphed into a worried expression as she turned towards Ains, "Sir Ains we can not allow these assassinations under any circumstances. As the Princess, I order you to use any means necessary to stop those assassins before they enter Plegian territory and attempt to hide away those targeted by this Inquisition. Sir Ains, you can not fail this or the blood of so many innocents will flow through Ylisse's finger."

Ains took a knee before Emmeryn as he bowed once more with his gauntlet, "I promise that not a single assassin of your father's forces will make it across the Plegian border your highness. The nobility will aid me in both preventing these assassins from crossing over and hiding away those political figures your father wants to go missing. I shall leave at once to prepare counter forces, please tell the Prince that I wish him well."

He would need to recruit a sizeable amount of independent spies and assassins to counter act the Mad King's own supply of men. He did not wish to see a war with their neighbor as the scale would be massive enough that a sizeable portion of both nations would lose a major chunk of their population. Emmeryn waved him away and he immediately head out to begin his counter plotting under the nose of the Exalt.

* * *

Chrom yelled as he whacked a training dummy with a wooden sword as hard as he could. He would never again let his father lay a hand of Emmeryn or Lissa. That monster will not harm them and the guardsmen will make sure that he is trained enough to fight his father should the need arise. Of course, he never told the soldiers why he was training so hard, but they had earnestly went out of their way to help train their Prince. Both recruits and veterans alike gave him tips on his stance or how to properly swing the sword.

They often gathered around and watched him swing at the dummy while only interrupting him to give input on his actions. He was old enough to realize that these men seemed to be just as disturbed with the Exalt as he was. These soldiers were much better fathers than his own and he embraced their attention and lessons with open arms. Chrom just hoped that Paladin Regius would swing by again and help him learn how to use the lance once more. The guards always said a true soldier had two methods of fighting and Chrom had chosen the sword and lance.

The soldiers in the barracks looked on at their Prince training his heart out. Whereas the Exalt wielded madness, the Prince wielded duty. These soldiers held great respect for their young Prince and silently promised themselves that should the Exalt not have them executed on a whim, they would stand with the Prince no matter what he chose in the future. Treason against the Exalt would not be out of the question should their Prince order it. He was everything a ruler should be in the eyes of the soldiers. He respected the common people and radiated an aura of duty towards his family and home. They would die for him should the need arise and there would be zero regrets falling in battle for such a worthy ruler.


End file.
